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Model Comparison

Gemma 3 1B vs Kimi K2 InstructWhich is better in 2026?

Kimi K2 Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Verdict: Gemma 3 1B vs Kimi K2 Instruct — which is better?

Gemma 3 1B (by Google) and Kimi K2 Instruct (by Moonshot AI) are two of the AI models people compare most. Here is how they stack up on benchmarks, price and capabilities, and which one to pick in 2026.

Gemma 3 1B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Kimi K2 Instruct is better at 6 benchmarks (GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, IFEval, MMLU-Pro, SimpleQA). Kimi K2 Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Choose Gemma 3 1B if…

  • you are already invested in the Google ecosystem

Choose Kimi K2 Instruct if…

  • you want the strongest raw capability — it leads on 6 of 6 shared benchmarks
  • you want the most recent training data — it shipped Jul 2025

Performance Benchmarks

Comparative analysis across standard metrics

6 benchmarks

Gemma 3 1B outperforms in 0 benchmarks, while Kimi K2 Instruct is better at 6 benchmarks (GPQA, GSM8k, HumanEval, IFEval, MMLU-Pro, SimpleQA).

Kimi K2 Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks.

Fri Aug 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

Arena Performance

Human preference votes

Model Size

Parameter count comparison

999.0B diff

Kimi K2 Instruct has 999.0B more parameters than Gemma 3 1B, making it 99900.0% larger.

Google
Gemma 3 1B
1.0Bparameters
Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Instruct
1.0Tparameters
1.0B
Gemma 3 1B
1000.0B
Kimi K2 Instruct

Context Window

Maximum input and output token capacity

Only Kimi K2 Instruct specifies input context (200,000 tokens). Only Kimi K2 Instruct specifies output context (200,000 tokens).

Google
Gemma 3 1B
Input- tokens
Output- tokens
Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Instruct
Input200,000 tokens
Output200,000 tokens
Fri Aug 07 2026 • llm-stats.com

License

Usage and distribution terms

Gemma 3 1B is licensed under Gemma, while Kimi K2 Instruct uses MIT.

License differences may affect how you can use these models in commercial or open-source projects.

Gemma 3 1B

Gemma

Open weights

Kimi K2 Instruct

MIT

Open weights

Release Timeline

When each model was launched

Gemma 3 1B was released on 2025-03-12, while Kimi K2 Instruct was released on 2025-07-11.

Kimi K2 Instruct is 4 months newer than Gemma 3 1B.

Gemma 3 1B

Mar 12, 2025

1.4 years ago

Kimi K2 Instruct

Jul 11, 2025

1.1 years ago

4mo newer

Knowledge Cutoff

When training data ends

Neither model specifies a knowledge cutoff date.

Unable to compare the recency of their training data.

No cutoff dates available

Outputs Comparison

Notice missing or incorrect data?Start an Issue discussion→

Key Takeaways

Google

No standout differentiators in the data we have for this pair.

Moonshot AI
Larger context window (200,000 tokens)
Higher GPQA score (75.1% vs 19.2%)
Higher GSM8k score (97.3% vs 62.8%)
Higher HumanEval score (93.3% vs 41.5%)
Higher IFEval score (89.8% vs 80.2%)
Higher MMLU-Pro score (81.1% vs 14.7%)
Higher SimpleQA score (31.0% vs 2.2%)

Detailed Comparison

Interactive Arena

Judge for yourself.

Run your own prompts against Gemma 3 1B and Kimi K2 Instruct side-by-side, then vote on the output you prefer.

Gemma 3 1B
✓ Preferred
Kimi K2 Instruct
Open in Playground
AI Model Comparison Table
Feature
Google
Gemma 3 1B
Moonshot AI
Kimi K2 Instruct

FAQ

Common questions about Gemma 3 1B vs Kimi K2 Instruct.

Which is better, Gemma 3 1B or Kimi K2 Instruct?

Kimi K2 Instruct significantly outperforms across most benchmarks. Gemma 3 1B is made by Google and Kimi K2 Instruct is made by Moonshot AI. The best choice depends on your use case — compare their benchmark scores, pricing, and capabilities above.

How does Gemma 3 1B compare to Kimi K2 Instruct in benchmarks?

Gemma 3 1B scores IFEval: 80.2%, GSM8k: 62.8%, Natural2Code: 56.0%, MATH: 48.0%, HumanEval: 41.5%. Kimi K2 Instruct scores MATH-500: 97.4%, GSM8k: 97.3%, CBNSL: 95.6%, HumanEval: 93.3%, MMLU-Redux: 92.7%.

What are the context window sizes for Gemma 3 1B and Kimi K2 Instruct?

Gemma 3 1B supports an unknown number of tokens and Kimi K2 Instruct supports 200K tokens. A larger context window lets you process longer documents, conversations, or codebases in a single request.

What are the main differences between Gemma 3 1B and Kimi K2 Instruct?

Key differences include licensing (Gemma vs MIT). See the full comparison above for benchmark-by-benchmark results.

Who makes Gemma 3 1B and Kimi K2 Instruct?

Gemma 3 1B is developed by Google and Kimi K2 Instruct is developed by Moonshot AI.

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